Vetri Vellore, an experienced technology entrepreneur hailing from Seattle, is embarking on a new venture with the aim of enhancing business performance and securing funding from investors who previously backed his ventures.
On Thursday, Rhythms unveiled a substantial $26 million seed funding round, co-led by Madrona Venture Group and Greenoaks, with contributions from Founders’ Co-op, Accel, and Cercano (formerly Vulcan).
Based in the Seattle area, the company is in the process of developing a platform that integrates with diverse internal systems to analyze the business’s “rhythms” – encompassing habits and patterns such as routine business reviews, weekly retrospectives, and cross-functional meetings. This analysis leverages advanced AI technologies like large language models.
By amalgamating insights from internal protocols and industry best practices, the platform seeks to elucidate the factors contributing to varying team performances within the same organization and offer recommendations to enhance overall productivity.
Vellore, previously the brain behind Ally, a renowned framework for team and business management, has a track record of aiding enterprises in monitoring their Objectives and Key Results (OKR). Following Microsoft’s acquisition of the startup in 2021, Vellore served as the Vice President of Business at Redmond, a tech giant, for two years.
Moreover, Vellore established Chronus, a company specializing in contemporary tools for individual development programs, which he later sold to a private equity firm in 2015.
In a conversation with GeekWire, Vellore shared that Rhythms is the culmination of his three-year endeavor to develop technologies that enhance efficiency and well-being for businesses and their employees.
In a recent phone interview, he expressed, “I’ve been on a quest for the elixir, the essence of true productivity.”
Rhythms aims to support businesses striving for consistent growth with the same or fewer employees despite financial constraints. However, challenges may arise from other trends, such as evolving collaboration practices due to disparate data sources from various software platforms and the rise of hybrid work setups.
Vellore emphasized Rhythms’ strong rapport with Microsoft, aspiring for a platform akin to Microsoft 365.
Addressing concerns about privacy, Vellore clarified that Rhythms evaluates team performance rather than individual contributions. He underscored the company’s commitment to prioritizing privacy and security in its solution development process.
S. “Soma” Somasegar, Managing Director at Madrona and Vellore’s former colleague at Microsoft, anticipates Rhythms to carve a niche in the market as a pioneering venture.
Vellore deliberated on this venture extensively, noting, “It seems like all the pieces are falling into place.”
Joining Vellore at Chantilly are co-founders Madhan Subhas and Hasan Kumar, his former colleagues from Ally and Chronus.
Currently, Rhythms has a team of five employees split between Seattle and India. The forthcoming months will see the company utilizing the funding to expand its workforce and unveil a product preview. While it has yet to onboard paying clients, Rhythms targets businesses across various industries and sizes.
